The chamber pot was originally designed for females. Called the Bourdaloue, it allowed women to urinate squatting or sitting without accidents. It was supposedly named after the French Catholic priest Louis Bourdaloue, whose sermon were so long that women brought Bourdaloue so they could urinate without having to leave.

In the 19th century, water closets started to be more common than chamber pots, but chamber pots were still used until the mid-20th century. Today, they are used in countries that have no indoor plumbing.

In North America and the UK, "potty" refer to the toilets made especially for potty training. These toilets are similar to chamber pots.

In the Philippines, chamber pots are used as urinals and are commonly called "Arinola" in Philippine languages like Tagalog and Cebuano.

In Korea, chamber pots are referred to as yogang (요강). Currently, they are still used in some country regions in the North.